The Best College Laptop

Started by El Héroe Oscuro September 5th, 2014 11:40 AM
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El Héroe Oscuro

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Male
Chicago
Seen April 10th, 2022
Posted August 21st, 2021
7,237 posts
14.3 Years
Yo! So earlier today my laptop fried (or at least I believe it fried on me) and as a result I think I'm going to need to go out and buy a new laptop! I didn't like my laptop to begin with - too bulky - so this actually works out for me. So, that's where y'all come in! What kind of laptop do you think is best for a college student like myself? If it's something you own and you like it, please recommend it! The only condition is nothing two expensive; I'm not going to dish out $2K on something on this, so keep that in mind.
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Austin

Age 26
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I see Macbook Airs EVERYWHERE on my campus. I wouldn't necessarily say they're the best, but they're super tiny and lightweight (2lbs, I think), so that's a plus. And they have up to 9 hours of battery life. I'm actually typing this right now from an Air. I don't know if that's what you had in mind, but I really like mine.
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Thomas

HAIL HYDRA!

Age 35
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Seen February 11th, 2022
Posted November 22nd, 2018
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The 11" Macbook Air was a godsend my last year in college. I couldn't even feel that thing in my bag. It's been my daily driver for two years and I don't think any Windows laptop comes close to its really nice mix of weight, portability, design, and build quality.

El Héroe Oscuro

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Posted August 21st, 2021
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14.3 Years
What are your plans for it aside from schoolwork? And what are you going to school for?
I'm a Human Services major and I don't need it much for anything besides schoolwork; maybe the occasional Steam game and Minecraft, but those are the only other usages I can think for it.
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Thomas

HAIL HYDRA!

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Posted November 22nd, 2018
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I'm a Human Services major and I don't need it much for anything besides schoolwork; maybe the occasional Steam game and Minecraft, but those are the only other usages I can think for it.
For gaming reference my 11" Macbook air from two years ago can play the Tomb Raider game from 2013.

El Héroe Oscuro

IG: elheroeoscuro

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Chicago
Seen April 10th, 2022
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For gaming reference my 11" Macbook air from two years ago can play the Tomb Raider game from 2013.
Wow really? And the frames per second are good? Is 11" big for a laptop?
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Altius

Flygon Fan

Age 26
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Seen February 26th, 2019
Posted February 26th, 2019
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I think the MacBook Air is certainly worth considering, especially if you use an iPhone. I'm currently using a Pro and I'm very pleased with Mac OS. I don't think I'll switch back to Windows as my primary machine in a long time.

In fact, Macs can run Windows using Boot Camp (free) or Parallels/VMware Fusion (paid, but there's no restart required) just in case you need an occasional Windows app, but I don't use Boot Camp/Parallels/VMware at all and have little problems with this laptop in terms of compatibility.

MacBooks aren't the best (obviously), but if you use iOS devices a lot, the upcoming OS X Yosemite (which will be free, btw) has several really cool iOS-Mac continuity features like SMS/call relay and handoff and is pure eye candy.

Of course, if Mac isn't your cup of tea, I think most stuff from Asus is worth taking a look at. Dell is not a bad option either, and it is relatively inexpensive. I had very bad experiences with HP and Acer in terms of longevity... Not sure about other users, but I'd personally suggest avoiding the two.

donavannj

Age 32
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'cause it get cold like Minnesota
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Posted 1 Week Ago
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I'm a Human Services major and I don't need it much for anything besides schoolwork; maybe the occasional Steam game and Minecraft, but those are the only other usages I can think for it.
What OS did you have before? Many Steam games don't have Mac ports, so you'd have to Boot Camp Windows if your previous OS was Windows and a game you own does not have Mac port, which probably means needing to buy a Windows license.

What's your max budget?
whoops

Juno

OK I PULL UP

Age 28
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If you're more of a Windows person like me, then I would actually recommend a Microsoft Surface Pro. 1 and 2 would be cheaper, but the newest Surface Pro 3 isn't too different in terms of price and hardware, depending on what storage size you get.

Spoiler:


And even the older Surface Pro 2 (the price here is wrong as it's been slashed since the new one came out) seems to fare well next to the Mac Air.
Spoiler:


I'm still using the first Surface Pro, and it runs all my Steam games just fine (better than my laptop, actually, I really have to look into replacing that one day). I use it like a laptop most days and often forget that it's marketed as a "tablet-laptop hybrid". The only downside for me is that it's only got one USB port, so I can't charge my phone and use my mouse at the same time, but it's basically as functional as the average laptop.

And it's great for class too, OneNote can be easily organized into separate notebooks for different classes, and you can type your notes as well as draw diagrams and highlight stuff using the stylus. You can also record lectures since it's got a rear camera, though I don't use that.

donavannj

Age 32
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'cause it get cold like Minnesota
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Posted 1 Week Ago
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18.2 Years
Surface Pro 2 is pretty expensive for the relatively low storage space you get, though just like all Macs!. Not ideal storage size for gaming, even if the performance would be pretty good.
whoops

Juno

OK I PULL UP

Age 28
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That is true, I've had to swap in one game for another a few times because of storage capacity issues, especially if the game takes up a lot of space. Thank god for Steam Cloud! It definitely won't hold an entire library of games, but for an on-the-go machine, I think it's decent.

mikey

Age 30
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Posted 4 Days Ago
6,229 posts
14.1 Years
I used a HP laptop for the first three years of college. I recently switched to a Macbook Air. I'd recommend it. It's really efficient and easy to carry around with you.

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